Yep! Most people don't kick nearly enough, thus they look a bit strange shoving their way through the water at a 45 degree angle. The other thing that I do is stick my thumb out there. Basically it looks almost like you are giving a high five with a slightly curved hand. Practice practice practice!

I swim freestyle a mile a day, three to four days per week. I will be eager to attempt this.

It is indeed interesting to realize that expert coordination is possible among one's body parts to gain a more efficient stroke. Having never been professionally coached, I don't know what that coordination consists of, but I can tell there's an ideal way to do it.

I swim a mile in half an hour - I just wish I could force myself to do opposite-side breathing.

Can someone help me be even ABLE to breathe in and out of the water without nearly choking every time? I would love to swim a whole lot more than I do, but it gets tiring QUICK when you can only gasp for air every 3-4 strokes :(

I can barely breathe when the shower faucet hits my forehead, if that helps.

Huck And Molly Ziegler:I swim freestyle a mile a day, three to four days per week. I will be eager to attempt this.

It is indeed interesting to realize that expert coordination is possible among one's body parts to gain a more efficient stroke. Having never been professionally coached, I don't know what that coordination consists of, but I can tell there's an ideal way to do it.

I swim a mile in half an hour - I just wish I could force myself to do opposite-side breathing.

A mile in half an hour isn't too bad from a pace point of view. Have you ever tried using paddles or stretch cords to try to build up your upper body strength? The key thing that you're trying to do is move as much water as possible with your arms. That means using a keyhole stroke and positioning your hand correctly. My coaches always used to have me do drills where I would try to swim the length in as few strokes as possible. Try to move as much water as possible and then glide it out as much as you can. Once you minimize the number of strokes it takes, then you can start adding speed.

Huck And Molly Ziegler:I swim freestyle a mile a day, three to four days per week. I will be eager to attempt this.

It is indeed interesting to realize that expert coordination is possible among one's body parts to gain a more efficient stroke. Having never been professionally coached, I don't know what that coordination consists of, but I can tell there's an ideal way to do it.

I swim a mile in half an hour - I just wish I could force myself to do opposite-side breathing.

Opposite side breathing is really not that important unless you are racing and need to see your competitors. Strength training will take you far, as will working on your kick and turn.

I remember during the last summer olympics, when Michael Phelps was doing his thang, I heard rumor that one of his techniques to increase his swimming power was that he gripped his toes during his strokes. Like, try to curl your foot into a fist, that kind of motion. Sounded plausible-yet-ridiculous, but I imagine that training for the olympics, you would want any possible edge you can get.

DesertEagle:Can someone help me be even ABLE to breathe in and out of the water without nearly choking every time? I would love to swim a whole lot more than I do, but it gets tiring QUICK when you can only gasp for air every 3-4 strokes :(

I can barely breathe when the shower faucet hits my forehead, if that helps.

I haven't tried it yet (I have a race in 2 weeks and am not changing anything right now), but I've had several people recommend the Total Immersion system to me. I'll be picking it up once I have time to re-structure my stroke.